Skip to content

How to Cut Wood Slices with Chainsaw?

how to cut wood slices with chainsaw

Wood slicing is a lovely DIY crafting if you can successfully do it. Purchasing of sliced wood from the market may be an expensive matter. Besides this, you may always not get the quality wood slice from the market.

If you are habituated using a gas-powered or electric chainsaw, you can easily afford to slice your wood trunks into your back yard.

Slicing of wood trunks/logs, sand them using any sand block to smooth the edge of each slice, and finally drying them into the oven can make you capable of producing a variety of DIY crafting.

You can use you the slice which you process in this way for making any your home decoration, light home furniture, making your wood ornaments, tabletops, or any other wood showpiece as well.

However, now tell me frankly, do you think wood slicing with a chainsaw is very difficult? Do you want to feel pretty at the time of wood slicing with your chainsaw? So we have come for you today.

We are here today with our today’s guideline on-how to cut wood slices with chainsaw.

Once you read the full content and once you start slicing wood in this way, it will probably give you a feel of cutting potato with your kitchen knife while you are cutting the wood using a chainsaw.

Tools you will need to slice the wood

» A chainsaw

» Wood to be sliced

» Protective gear

» Protective clothes

» Measuring tape

» Marker or tape gum

Safety checking of the chainsaw

Before you start the main operation, you need to check the main parts by which you will do this job. 

Yes, I am talking about your chainsaw. Check the chainsaw and ensure whether the following things are okay or not-

Chain oiler 

If the chain oiler does not work correctly, your chainsaw will not work on time. So, check whether the oiler is working correctly or not.

Chain Brake

This part is paddle-shaped and features to automatically and instantly stop the chainsaw if you need it.

Bar -Tip guard 

This part of the chainsaw is work to prevent any kickback by the chain bar.

Chain catcher 

The chain catcher is a mandatory portion of any chainsaw. It prevents to throughout of any broken chain to the users. So, this part is to work for the safety of the users.

Bumper spikes

It gives more controlled sewing by your chainsaw. Check is there any broken bumper spikes are present in the chain. If you see any spikes are broken, replace them before running the machine.

Throttle Interlock

It is a safety trigger and needs to work correctly to secure your hand.

Anti-vibration system 

If this system rejects to work on time, your hand may fatigue. So, this system should work correctly. 

You can check the anti-vibration system of your chainsaw by running the chainsaw for a few seconds.

How to cut wood slices with chainsaw

You can slice the wood log into your way obviously, but we are writing here some necessary steps or process which may help you to complete your slicing process rapidly and efficiently.

So, let’s see some steps in the followed way.

These steps are not any mandatory steps; they are some usual instruction which we have gathered here by consulting with some of the renowned professional woodcutters.

1. It is a prerequisite condition for the start of the cutting operations. Wear protective clothing and equipment all you need. You cannot progress the cutting process without taking the required safety and precaution along with you.

2. Clear the work area from any kids, or any unwanted things. A clean and clear space will help you to work peacefully.

Also, make sure there is no such thing happening in your work area, which may spoil your concentration even a little bit.

3. The large wood body you are going to slice into your desired pieces place in the ground properly. Do not place the wood body just onto the ground floor. It will spoil both the chainsaw and the wood slices as well.

So, place some rubbish wood pieces or some wood scraps on the ground floor and place the wood body onto them.

If you put the wood body in such a way, there will be some blank space that ensures your chainsaw will not going to cut the soil from the ground under the wood.

You can keep the wood scraps also above the floor using sawhorses. It will support to keep the wood scrap above ground level and also the wood log above the wood scrap.

However, you also use a log jack to keep the wood log above the ground floor.

4. Find the wood knot to avoid any dangerous wood slicing by your chainsaw. A wood knot is such a place that is strong in most parts of the wood log. This place tends to retort the slicing operation. 

You can avoid the wood knot once you can recognize it. See the whole wood; if there is any circular, condensed, and little bit browner, the color place is present; mark it with a marker; it is a wood knot, and it should avoid as much as possible.

If you want to cut the knot, you will be unable to cut the wood properly, and it will break your chain blade.

So, avoid the knot as much as possible, preventing the wood knot will protect your chain blade from any premature wear and tear.

5. Now decide the slice diameter you want to cut your wood log. You can slice the log into a massive slice or any thinner slice.

A large slice is needed to make any platform-like structure. You can slice the log into medium to thinner slice. Without any special requirement, don’t try to make any hefty slices; it will take a long time to dry.

You can use a measuring tape to measure the thickness of the sliced wood. After measuring the wood, mark the place with a marker or a colored tape.

6. Measure the wood and mark it. How will you measure the wood? Use a measuring tape and measure as per your desired slice size. 

While you measure the wood, mark into each measurement by a red marker. If you do like this way, you will be precisely able to slice the wood as per your demandable size.

A chain bar also can give the measurement while you slice the wood. But the problem is, everyone may not handle the chain bar to measure each slice portion while running the machine.

That’s why, once anybody manually measures and mark the cutting place of the wood, it is effortless to run the chainsaw at that place and cut them into some equal thickened slice.

7. Choose the correct chainsaw. You may fall in confusion by seeing such a suggestion. If we frankly say, for slicing any wood log, it is always better to use a miter saw, or a circular saw.

However, you can also continue this slicing process using any chainsaw or band saw or a handsaw as well.

A circular chainsaw will slice your wood log relatively precisely and smoothly. Additionally, there is a chance of getting the slice with a wave structure, but no problem if you can guide your gas-powered or electric chainsaw well enough, they will also give you some pieces of the fantastic wood slice.

8. Start the cutting operations. There are several ways to slice the wood log. However, we are giving here some of them-

» Over bucking wood

It is the starting of tree cutting. This process of wood cutting called over bucking. In this process, the log portion of the tree separated from the top part of the tree.

Once this cutting is done, the wood log falls onto the ground and sits there. Over bucking is an easy task, and each tree cutting needs to start with it.

» Slicing the logs into middle

In this method, you can place the log into the wood scrap or onto the sawhorses and can cut the wood log on its middle site. You will get two relatively small wood logs in this process.

» Slicing the perpendicular wood slices:

In this process, one end of the log will stay on the ground, and another portion of the wood log will stand on the ground supporting by the sawhorses or any wood rubbish.

However, hence in this way, you can slice the log longwise to make some bigger wood slices.

There is also so much wood cutting present now a day, but we include the main three types above here.

9. Place the wood log in the position according to your demand slicing. Grip the chainsaw firmly by both your hands.  Place the chainsaw minimum of 5 inches above the Wood log.

Never touch wood with the chainsaw if it is not turn on yet. Switch on the chainsaw and slowly takes it at the close of your wood log.

Start to run the chainsaw giving a gentle pressure onto the handle. Let your chainsaw to increase work efficiency gradually.

Do not hurry; guide your chainsaw.

Always keep in your mind, while you are cutting any woods using the chainsaw, stand by placing your both legs separately and far from each other.

10. Once your one slicing is done, go for the next slicing following the upper instruction solely in the same way.

If your chainsaw produces too much sound, which also can pass the helmet, ignore the irritating noise, it will help to concentrate more on your work so that you could get a nice and clean wood slicing rapidly.

11. Though this process is not including in the slicing of the wood, it is a necessary process that I can’t delay to write here. And that is, cleaning of the slicing lumber.

You can use a metal sponge or nylon brush to clean the edge of the cutting wood pieces. If any larger debris or bulks remain staying onto the wood slice, cleaning them will rid all of them.

12. For more efficient finishing, you can sand the wood slice using a wood sander. Using the wood sander gives you an excellent finishing on both sides of the wood pieces. However, it would be best if you dried the wood piece. Using an oven will dry the slices.

Dry the wood piece in such a way so that one slice doesn’t stick with another wood slice.

For any old and dried wood, you can avoid the step of baking them into the oven, as they are already dried automatically, so drying is not required anymore for them.

13. Finally, Store your dried wood slice properly. You can keep them as it is. You can make furniture or other countertops using them, even you can paint them, and can keep in the corner of your bedroom as a natural home decorator.

Use your imagination power about the wood slice and do any practical projects using them.

So know all the 13 steps to understand how to cut wood slices with chainsaw. These steps are going to help you with slicing the wood with a chainsaw.

Maintenance tips for the chainsaw

  1. See the oil level in your engine.
  2. Mix the oil and the gas at the saying ratio from the manufacturer. (usually 40:1 or 50:1)
  3. Clean the air filter twice in a month if you are using the chainsaw frequently. You can replace this filter annually to ensure an exact pressure is producing inside the engine.
  4. Never forget to sharpen your chainsaw before start the wood slicing.
  5. After using the chainsaw, wipe the whole machine with a dry cloth and store it far from the kid’s reach.

Safety tips for you

  1. Wear protective clothes like injury protected pants, thick hand gloves, shoes with metal soles, chainsaw chaps, a long-sleeved shirt, etc. to protect your body from any harm either by the saw blade or by the sharp wood pieces.
  2. Never wear any extra lose dress which can circulate with the chainsaw accidentally.
  3. Wear some protective equipment like the helmet, safety goggles, earplugs, etc. to protect you from the dangerous impact of the chainsaw. You can also use some noise reducer equipment to reduce the loud noise creates from a running chainsaw.

Final verdict

Please follow the above instructions related to the wood slicing and the safety tips if you determined to start the slicing operation with your chainsaw.

So here is all about the guideline and safety tips related to – how to cut wood slices with chainsaw. Follow our instructions with your full concentration. Hopefully, after then, you will able to make some wood slices from the wood log successfully using a chainsaw.

Therefore finally, we expect that you have enjoyed our article. If you really liked this article even a little bit, our effort will never go in vain.

Happy wood slicing!

Thank you.

error: Content is protected !!